Encounters of the Future Sort
by IHaveASiriusObsession
Summary: A freak cauldron explosion leads James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew hurtling forward into the future where they come into contact with Harry and friends. Anything is possible.
1. Disappearing Cauldrons

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Disappearing Cauldrons is Never A Good Sign_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR

A/N: All right, so this chapter is a bit short, but expect the others to be longer. I don't usually write stories about this kind of thing, so please let me know what you think. Enjoy : )

* * *

It was a beautiful Saturday. The sun was shining, casting rays of warmth on the freshly defrosted spring grounds of Hogwarts. Most students were outside, enjoying this sudden heat wave, be it lounging on the grass or going for a dip in the Black Lake.

But if someone just _happened _to journey up to the school's seventh floor, their nose would detect the foul stench rotten eggs, and their eyes would see through the fog that was consuming the corridor, and they would be led to a room that could be found only if you knew where it was, and would discover four boys hovering over a giant, black cauldron.

"That's it, we are officially going to die."

"Shut up Moony! We're _fine_."

"Do you know how temperamental this potion is? It's past N.E.W.T. level!"

"I agree with Prongs- shove it."

"No one cares what you think Padfoot!"

"You know Moony, that really hurt."

"Sod off. It's not my fault that you two have some absurd death wish."

James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew were situated in the Room of Requirement. Each had a curious bubble around their heads to protect them from the horrid smell of the potion brewing just before them.

"Why are we doing this again?" Remus asked almost in agony.

Sirius stirred the potion while he spoke. "Because you said we needed some extra potions practice for our O.W.L.'s."

Remus rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I_ meant _you should ask Slughorn for some extra lessons, or something. Not attempt to brew a complicated potentially fatal potion! You _do _know that I'm a Prefect and this is exactly the thing I'm supposed to prevent, don't you?"

"Oh, relax. You're here aren't you?" James pointed out, grinning.

"I'm only here to make sure you don't blow yourselves up." Remus said through gritted teeth.

Sirius stirred the potion twice to the left and four times to the right.

"What are we supposed to do next?" Sirius asked as he finished stirring.

James scanned through the instructions book, a frown on his face. "In this book, _Potions for the Potentially Challenged, _it says to add three frog legs, but in this one," James held up the second book, "_If You Can Brew it, You Can Do It_ says to squeeze the juice from six burrow beans first."

"Hmm… What do you think Moony?" Sirius asked him.

"I think that you should stop making the potion all together!" Remus shouted, throwing his arms up.

"Okay, I say we add the frog legs, then the beans." Sirius proposed, ignoring Remus.

"Right," James agreed, passing the ingredients to Sirius who threw them in the cauldron.

Nothing happened.

"_Great_, " Sirius said, "we screwed it up."

"No, wait," Peter said, gazing into the cauldron, "I think it's doing something…."

The potion was starting to bubble and froth, turning a violent shade of red.

"Moony," James said cautiously, "what's happening?"

Remus went rigid. "RUN! JUST RUN!" he shouted, pointing at the door.

But, it was too late. The cauldron had exploded mere seconds later with a giant BOOM! and the next thing the Marauders knew they were lying face down on the floor.

"Ugh," Sirius groaned as he sat up, massaging his temples.

"What happened?" Peter asked, standing and looking around for the cauldron.

Remus got to his feet, his eyes also searching for the cauldron. When he did not locate it, he froze to the spot.

"What's wrong Moony?" James sat up, noticing his tension.

Remus said nothing.

"I think the potion gave him brain damage," Sirius joked aloud.

"T-t-the cauldron…" Remus finally stammered, pointing to the middle of the room where it had been. "It's _gone_."

James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter all stared at the spot where the cauldron had once been, eyes wide with shock. Disappearing cauldrons is never a good sign.

"The ingredients are gone too, and it doesn't smell bad anymore either," Peter pointed out the obvious, breaking the silence that had befallen them while removing his bubble head charm, causing the others to do the same.

"That's a bit creepy," Sirius commented.

James nodded. "What say you we just leave and pretend like nothing happened?"

"Good idea, Prongs," Sirius agreed, heading towards the exit.

"Yeah," Peter followed.

"Should we? It's kind of too strange to ignore…." Remus disagreed.

James laughed. "Moony, now what could _possibly_ happen that we'd need to call attention to the matter?"

Remus looked anxious. "I don't know, I just have a bad feeling about this…."


	2. Pictures, Pranks, and Peeves

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Pictures, Pranks, and Peeves_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR

A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, the next chapter will be up sooner.

* * *

"So, what do you want to do?" Sirius asked, his hands behind his head, walking at a leisurely pace beside his friends.

James shrugged. "We could go swimming…."

Remus glanced out a nearby window. "Er- I don't think its exactly swimming weather."

James looked at him in confusion. "What are you on about? It was sunny just this morning…. Oh."

The sky was dark, cloudy, and wet. The grounds were obviously knee-deep in mud, giving the Marauders the impression that it had been raining for hours.

"That's weird," Remus said thoughtfully. "It must have come on suddenly."

"We could go to Hogsmade…." Wormtail suggested.

"Nah," Sirius brushed away the possibility. "I hate smelling like wet dog."

"Plus the full moon's only two weeks away, we can go then." James agreed.

"Let's just find something to do in the common room," Remus said.

"Fine." Sirius agreed, clearly bored. "Maybe Evans will be there!" he perked up.

James perked up too. "Yeah, let's go to the common room."

The Marauder's walked casually for the next couple of minutes, talking absentmindedly.

"Hey, Prongs," Sirius whispered. "I don't mean to freak you out, but that kid is staring at you."

"What kid?" James asked, whirling around to see a first year looking at him with wide-eyes.

"I've never seen him before…." Remus thought aloud.

Sirius contemplated the student. "Nor have I, come to think of it."

James casually strolled over to the boy, who had dropped his stare once he saw James was looking.

"Is there a problem here?" James asked.

The boy didn't answer, he just kept reading the book that he had buried his face in.

Sirius walked over and tapped the boy's shoulder. "I think Prong's just asked you if there was a problem, so is there?"

The boy looked up, terrified and white-faced. "Um… no. It's just, _you're_ Harry Potter."

James blinked twice. "No, _James_ Potter." he said in clarification. Then turning to his friends he added, "Who is this little bloke?"

"Dunno mate," Sirius shrugged. "What's your name?"

The boy seemed reluctant. "Euan Abercrombie."

"Never heard of you," Sirius said, as if that was the only thing that mattered. "Get lost."

Euan Abercrombie immediately complied, running in the opposite direction the Marauders were headed.

"Little git," Sirius muttered after him. "As if he- agggh!"

A dungbomb had just flown out of nowhere and hit Sirius square in the face. A little man appeared suddenly, floating just above their reach, humming to himself.

"PEEVES! I swear-!"

Peeves smiled a malicious smile and began pelting the party with dungbombs and what looked like moldy fruit. James, Remus, Sirius, and Peter took out their wands, but they were knocked out of their hands.

"Reinforcements!" Remus shouted. Only he could take 'go get help' and make it sound nerdy.

"On it!" James shouted, and he disappeared down the corridor, arriving at the portrait hole a minute later.

"Lemon meringue pie," he told the fat lady. But she did not admit entrance. "Lemon meringue pie." he repeated clearly.

"That's not the password." the fat lady said simply.

"But it was just this morning!" James complained.

"No password, no entrance." she repeated firmly.

James looked around for someone he knew in the corridor. "There's no one around for me to ask!" he insisted. "You know this is my House! Let me in!"

The fat lady hesitated for a moment. "All right, _fine_. I guess _you _of all people deserve admittance…." she swung open. "And in the future, the password is 'mince meat pie.'"

"'Lemon meringue,' 'mince meat,' what's the difference?" James said, annoyed, as he stepped through the portrait hole.

James looked around the common room franticly for someone he knew, but came up blank. In fact, he knew _none _of these people. But… there _was _a red head over by the fire that looked familiar.

James walked across the common room, and as he did so, he was aware that several people were staring at him. Well, a lot of people stare at James normally, so it didn't really faze him.

The red head heard him coming, and turned around. It wasn't Lily, but someone James was completely unfamiliar with.

"Oh, hey Harry." the red head said. "I thought you were in the library with Ron?"

James was standing in front of the fire, his brain trying to comprehend what she was saying.

"You know," said a very bushy haired girl from beside the red head that James had not noticed before, "you really should be, Harry. _I _finished that essay _days_ ago,"

James stared at them, blank faced.

"I'm not Harry, I'm James." he said as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

The red head and the bushy haired girl exchanged a worried glance. The red head leaned over and whispered something in the bushy haired girl's ear that sounded like, "I think he's finally cracked."

The bushy haired girl bit her lip. "Er- are you feeling all right, Harry?" she asked.

"I'm _not _Harry," James insisted, "I'm James. And I've never seen you before. So do you mind telling me where I can find Lily Evans?"

The red head and the bushy haired girl exchanged another glance, anxious this time.

James rolled his eyes in frustration. "Look, do I have to spell it out for you?"

The red head looked at him. "Why don't you sit down?"

"Sorry, I can't at the moment. Moony, Wormtail, and Padfoot need are waiting for me- and why am I explaining myself to you?" he asked angrily.

Panic overcame the two girls' faces. The bushy haired one stood and grabbed his arm, trying to force him to sit down.

"It's okay, Harry. You obviously need to talk, and Ginny and I are here for you-"

James shrugged out of her grasp easily. "I don't need to talk about anything!" he said, annoyed now. "Will you tell me where I can find Frank, then? I can't seem to find anyone I know around here or I wouldn't bother asking."

The bushy haired girl touched his shoulder gently. "I'm Hermione, remember?" she asked uncertainly. "And this," she pointed to the red head, "is Ginny."

"I don't know a Hermione, and I do know a Ginny, but she's a brunette and certainly not you." James said, agitated.

The bushy haired girl named Hermione sat back down hopelessly beside the red head named Ginny. James watched as Ginny whispered something in Hermione's ear.

"Right," Hermione said when Ginny was finished speaking. "Right, we really should…." she glanced up at James apprehensively. "Er- Harry?"

"James!" James said, seething.

"Er- all right then, _James_… I think you should come with us."

"Yeah," Ginny stood and hooked his arm with hers, "come with us for a minute."

James was fed up by this point. "Look, if you're not going to bring me to Evans then I have to get back to Sirius, Remus, and Peter."

He noticed Hermione and Ginny flinch at the names.

"Sure," Ginny said, "we'll bring you to her. She's upstairs in your dormitory-"

"Really?" James interrupted, bewildered, his thick head concluding that Lily had finally agreed to go out with him.

Ginny nodded. "Yes, just come with us…." and she and Hermione led James up to the boys dormitories.

When they entered the dorm room, James burst out laughing. "Since when has Frank liked the Chudley Cannons? They're the worst team in the league!" he said, motioning to the bed with the Cannons fan items all around it.

Ginny looked at James grinning, but Hermione was rummaging through a trunk.

James was confused. "Hey, I thought you said Evans was waiting up here? And why are you going through my trunk?"

Hermione ignored him.

"If I don't start getting some answers-"

"Here!" Hermione held out what looked like a leather-bound picture album. "Here's your answers."

James took the album, raising his eyebrows at the disheveled Hermione who was looking at him anxiously. Then he sat down on what he thought to be his bed and opened it.

He was stunned for a moment. These were pictures of, well, _him_. There was no other explanation: No one else could have messy hair like that. But, there was something wrong. In these pictures, most of them anyway, he looked old. Maybe eighteen or twenty. And so did Sirius and Remus and Peter… and Lily.

"Wait!" he yelled. "This doesn't make any sense…. Why do I look old and why is _Evans_ with me?"

Hermione and Ginny, who been watching him attentively while he looked through the album, jumped at being addressed so suddenly. James looked back and forth between them, waiting for an answer. But a moment later, his face erupted into a grin.

"Oh, I get it. This is one huge prank you're pulling on me to make me think I'm from another time or something, isn't it?" James asked Hermione and Ginny. "Well," he slammed the album on the bed, "it's going to take a lot more than that to fool James Potter." And he got up and left the room leaving Hermione and Ginny gaping after him.

* * *

A/N: Thank you to **Melora**, **TheLastVampirate**, **footprints . on . the . ceiling**, **KIM**, and **CSINYPacker012 **for reviewing.

Thank you to **RDucky**, **Ocean's Eyes**, **keeperoliver**, **ilplupwlp**, **FantasyFreakLover**, **CSINYPacker012**, and **ariellaaaa **for putting this on favorites.

Thanks to **anigurl28**, **CSINYPacker012**, **Fizzy-Flo**, **footprints . on . the . ceiling**, **LJpotter**, **TheLastVampirate**, and **vampirerule177 **for putting this on alerts.

Again, thank you all!


	3. The Pinnacle Of Obvious

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_The Pinnacle of Obvious_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR

A/N: Wow. I just want to say an ENORMOUS thank you to everyone who reviewed, put this on favorites, or alerts. All you guys are amazing, and made my week : )

* * *

"Harry! WAIT!"

James paused at the end of the corridor to shout, "I'm not Harry, I'm JAMES! For gods sake," but he was laughing.

He was halfway up the corridor just outside the Gryffindor portrait hole before Ginny and Hermione caught up with him.

"Harry, please! Hold on-!"

James turned around, still amused. "Okay," he said facing them, "you got me. I have to admit, I'm impressed with whoever planned this, those people looked _exactly_ like me and Evans, but the jokes over."

Hermione and Ginny stared at him like he was from another planet.

"All right, if that's all, I'll just be going…." he turned to leave.

Hermione grabbed his arm, holding him back. "Er- how about you come with us to find L-l-lily, Harry- er- I mean, J-j-james. She's um… that is, she's-"

"In the infirmary!" Ginny supplied.

Hermione nodded feverishly. "Yes- in the infirmary."

James raised his eyebrows between the two of them. "Why?" he pressed.

"She got hurt brewing an extra credit potions assignment." Ginny said convincingly.

"But," James began pointedly, "why wouldn't you tell me that earlier when I asked you?"

Hermione and Ginny exchanged a glance.

"Er- because… she didn't want you to come visit her." Hermione said hopefully.

James ran his hand through his hair, tousling it. "Of course- I should have known."

Ginny and Hermione exchanged another worried glance.

"Er- yes. Shall we go?" Ginny asked.

"Right," James agreed, and he strutted in the direction of the hospital wing, letting Ginny and Hermione fall into step behind him.

**-...-**

I think I have banana in my ear," Sirius complained, trying to dig it out with his finger. "A lot of help Prong's was."

Sirius, Remus, and Peter had emerged from the battle against Peeves quite scathed, each supporting the stench of dung and the remains of rotted fruit on their clothing.

"Yeah," Remus agreed. "He's probably in the common room chatting up Lily."

"Probably," Peter was quick to agree.

"What's the password again?" Sirius asked as they reached the portrait hole.

"I think it was 'lemon meringue pie,'" Remus supplied.

"You aren't the first to try that today," the fat lady said, eavesdropping.

Remus looked at her, confused. "It isn't 'lemon meringue pie?' That's what I've been telling everyone! Damn, what is it?"

The fat lady looked affronted. "You think _I'm _going to tell you?"

Remus tapped his badge. "I'm a Prefect,"

"Are you?" she said. "I was under the impression that Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger were the Gryffindor House Prefects."

Sirius, Remus, and Peter looked at each other, bewildered.

"Weasley- like Arthur Weasley?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, I believe that is his father," the fat lady answered.

Sirius shook his head, amused. "Arthur Weasley left Hogwarts a few years ago, he doesn't have a son that's a fifth year!"

The fat lady analyzed them for a moment. "You know, you three look familiar…."

Sirius laughed. "Of course we do, you see us more than twice a day!"

"Hmmm… You look like…." she said, "Oh, never mind. The password is 'meat mince pie.'" She swung open.

Sirius was still laughing as he stepped through the portrait hole, followed by Remus and Peter.

"I don't see him here," Peter pointed out the obvious as they searched the common room for James.

"Maybe he's upstairs?" Sirius suggested, climbing the spiral stairs to the boys' dormitories. Peter and Remus followed.

"Nope," Sirius said as he pushed opened the door. "Whoa, since when has Frank loved the Chudley Cannons?" he laughed, examining the bedpost nearest the door.

"Something's not right…." Remus observed cautiously as he entered the room.

"What's that?" Sirius asked, sitting on what he thought to be his bed.

"Er- well…." Remus stood beside him. "For one, that kid who called James 'Harry.' For another, I could have _sworn_ I knew the password, I thought we had used it just this morning after breakfast?"

"Yeah, me too." Sirius shrugged. "But, 'James' and 'Harry' are pretty common names."

Remus nodded as if he were trying to accept this possibility. "Okay, then, did you see anyone you recognized in the common room? And what about the Chudley Cannons stuff? Last I knew, Frank hated them."

Sirius shrugged. "No, I didn't see anyone I knew, but they're probably all in the library studying or something, and Frank never said he _hated_ the Cannons…."

"I still say something's off…." Remus said. "And since when does Prongs make his bed?" he asked, staring at what he thought to be James's bed.

Sirius smirked, examining the neatly-made bed. "What's that?" he asked, noticing the album.

Remus reached for it, sat beside Sirius, and opened it.

"Pictures?" Sirius asked, examining the first page.

"Looks like it…." Remus said. "But, why would Prongs-"

Remus stopped talking mid-sentence, staring at a picture on the second page.

"Moony? What-" But just then, Sirius had spotted it too. "What the hell!"

It was a picture of all four of them- James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter- in their dormitory. A picture that neither Remus, Sirius, nor Peter had recalled taking.

"We look…well- _old_." Peter observed, peering at the picture.

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, but I look _good_!" he exclaimed. "What do you reckon, Moony?"

Remus was still frozen, his gaze fixed on the picture.

Sirius flipped the page. "This is…._us_? Right?"

Remus nodded slowly.

"Who else would it be?" Peter pointed out. "They look like us…."

"Look at this one!" Sirius pointed to a picture. "It looks like Prongs's wedding…. I'm best man, and- WHAT THE HELL? EVANS?"

Remus jumped to his feet, suddenly, causing the album to fall to the floor, which Sirius quickly retrieved. He began pacing around the circular dormitory, muttering to himself.

Sirius was beside himself. "_What do you reckon?"_ he demanded of Remus, who ignored him. It appeared that he was doing some serious thinking.

"But what-? Impossible…. But probable…. How could it be? No…. must be something else…." Remus muttered.

"Moony!" Sirius shouted, startling Remus. "What the hell _is_ this?"

Remus sat down in a huff on James's bed, facing Sirius.

He sighed. "It's pretty of obvious, if you think about it."

Sirius raised his eyebrows at him. "What? That this book is from the future or something?"

Remus sighed again. "More like _we're_ _in_the future, Padfoot."

Sirius stared at Remus for a moment like he was crazy, then burst into laughter.

"Are you serious? Us? In the future? Are you insane!" Sirius choked out between laughter.

Remus stood and began pacing again. "It all makes sense! The password! The weather! Everything! Look around, does this look anything like we left our dormitory?"

Sirius gazed around. "No, but I s'pose the elves have been to tidy-"

Remus threw his hands up in exasperation.

"Look!" he pointed to the initials on the trunk of Sirius's bed. "Read it!"

Sirius stood and bent down to the trunks height. "RBW…. That's odd."

"It's not just _odd_! Do we know anyone with those initials?" he answered before Sirius could. "No!"

Sirius seemed to ponder this for a moment. Then, he went around and checked the initials on each of the trunks around the dormitory, arriving at James's bed last.

"HJP…." Sirius read aloud, shaking his head.

Remus looked at him anxiously. "See?"

Sirius looked at Remus in disbelief. "Okay, say, _hypothetically_ we are in the future. How the hell did that happen?"

Remus sat back down on a bed. "I haven't got a clue."

"D'you think that cauldron exploding had anything to do with it-?" Peter asked, helpfully.

"I think it had everything to do with it." Remus said.

"If we're seriously in the future," Sirius began. "Then…. Can't we-"

"No!" Remus said, not bothering to hear Sirius out. "We must not interfere with anything!"

Sirius sat down beside Remus. "Before we go back, though, it wouldn't hurt to have a glimpse at our future selves? Would it?"

Remus was on his feet in a split second. "We can't do anything- know anything- we shouldn't even be seen! We have to get out of here." he said urgently.

"All right, all right." Sirius gave in. "But, what about Prongs?"

Remus froze and then swore so badly, it nearly offended Sirius.


	4. Altered Plans

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Altered Plans_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR. Unfortunately, I am not in that equation.

A/N: Sorry for the late update, sadly I have other obligations that, dare I say it, are more important than fan fiction. But, updates will hopefully be more frequent for the time being. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and put this on favorites. : )

* * *

"Okay- here's what we do," Remus said to Sirius and Peter urgently. "We go straight to Dumbledore-"

"Shouldn't we find Prongs first?" Sirius objected.

Remus shook his head, pacing. They were still in the dormitories. "Okay, new plan. We get out of here in case the people who have this dormitory come in. We decide along the way."

**-...-**

Once James, Hermione and Ginny had reached the hospital wing, James strutted in through the doors and scanned for Lily, while Ginny and Hermione hurried over to Madam Pomfrey, who was attending a patient.

"Can I do something for you?" Madam Pomfrey asked Hermione and Ginny while spooning some disgusting looking green liquid into a glass and handing it to her patient.

Hermione nodded anxiously. "Yes… Er, well, it's Harry…." she motioned over to James who was still looking for Lily. "He's not, er, feeling _himself_."

Madam Pomfrey put a top on the green potion and walked away from her patient to speak with Hermione and Ginny in private.

"That's no surprise, poor soul, having to deal with so much…." Madam Pomfrey said, clutching her heart. "He'll be alright, a calming draught should set him straight."

"Well, you see," Ginny began, "he thinks he's his father…." she trailed off awkwardly.

Madam Pomfrey glanced towards James who was walking over to them.

"Hey, I don't see Evans here." James said, looking irritated.

Madam Pomfrey clutched her heart again, grabbed James's arm and led him to a vacant bed and sat him down. Hermione and Ginny followed.

"Here, dear, this should help." Madam Pomfrey said as she poured a cup of calming draught for James and shoved it in his hand.

James stared at her. "Help what?"

Madam Pomfrey analyzed James and turned to Hermione and Ginny who gave her a grimace. She turned back to James, "Dear, maybe you should spend the night, see if you feel better in the morning…."

James stood. "Look, I don't know what's going on. First you-" he pointed to Hermione and Ginny- "-and now you!" he looked at Madam Pomfrey. "This is too weird, you're all insane. I'm going to find Sirius, Remus, and Peter."

Madam Pomfrey issued a little gasp at the mention of names, which only proved James's theory further that everyone had gone loopy. Quickly, he left the hospital wing, leaving Hermione, Ginny, and Madam Pomfrey staring blankly after him.

**-...-**

Remus, Sirius, and Peter hurtled down the corridor. Remus looked on the verge on a nervous breakdown.

"Moony- how're we supposed to get into Dumbledore's office?" Sirius asked. "We don't know the password."

Remus grabbed Peter and Sirius by the arm and shoved them into the nearest broom cupboard.

"You're right…." Remus said absentmindedly as he began once again to pace.

Peter muttered "lumos" causing his wand to light at the tip and said, "We could go to McGonagall?"

Remus brushed away this possibility with a wave of his hand. "No- we don't even know if she still teaches here."

"We don't know if Dumbledore's still here, either." Sirius pointed out.

Remus stopped short. "He has to. He'd only been Headmaster a few years in our time…."

"But we don't even know how far in the future this is- It could be a hundred years!" Sirius objected.

Remus looked hopeless. "You're right." he looked up at Sirius and Peter. "Any ideas?"

The three stared at each other in silence for a few moments, contemplating their next move.

"Well," Sirius began slowly, "it can't hurt if we go to the Headmaster- whoever he is. If it's Dumbledore, it'll make things that much easier."

"I agree," Peter seconded.

Remus looked back and forth between his friends. "Okay. And let's try not to be seen."

**-...-**

James walked down the corridor, shaking his head. Had the world gone insane? Maybe the cauldron explosion really had done something, maybe it had made everyone go mad.

Heading towards the fifth floor, James intended to find where Sirius, Remus, and Peter had gone to. He thought they must have finished Peeves off by now, but he thought he'd check anyway.

As he headed down a corridor, he was stopped just outside the teachers' lounge by a short, squat woman in a frilly pink cardigan, rather resembling a toad.

"Mr. Potter," she began in a sugary sweet voice. This startled James, for he had rather expected a croak. "What are you doing?"

James stared at her for a moment, confused. "Who are you?" he asked rudely. He was fed up with everyone at the moment.

The toad raised her eyebrows disapprovingly. "Excuse me?"

"I said, _who are you_." James repeated fiercely, gritting his teeth.

A nasty smile crept slowly upon the toads face as she waved her finger back and forth rather childishly. "Now, now… We mustn't loose that temper of yours. Apparently you haven't had enough detentions to allow the message to _completely_ sink in. Another weeks worth will do just fine I think…."

James was dumbstruck and furious. Who was this woman and why was she giving him detentions?

"Look, I haven't the faintest idea who you are and what the hell is wrong with everyone, so if I missed something, now would be a fantastic time to fill me in." he said.

The smile slipped off the toads face as quickly as it had come.

"Mr. Potter, come with me." she said in a sharp voice, all traces of sweetness gone.

James watched as the toad turned on her heel and marched down the hallway. He had no intention of following her. She didn't sound like the kind of person who's bad side you wanted to be on, but James didn't much care about that period. Just as he began to walk in the opposite direction, the toad turned around and shouted, "You will spend the remaining evenings of your school career in my office if you do not follow me."

That idea did not appeal much to James, so he did.

**-...-**

"D'you think Hermione'll let me copy off the essay Snape set us?"

"Probably not. It's worth a try though,"

Remus, Sirius and Peter glanced around, searching for the origin of the voices. They were coming from around the corner.

"Quick, in here!" Remus pointed to a broom cupboard just to the left of the corridor.

Too late. They had rounded the corner. A red haired, tall and lanky boy, and a boy with jet black hair that stuck up in the back-

"Prongs!" Sirius shouted, causing Remus and Peter to freeze and stare.

The boys stopped talking and analyzed the three people before them, shock engulfing their faces.

"Prongs! You'll never believe it, but we're in the future!" Sirius said, looking as though he still didn't believe it himself. "I guess that cauldron explosion did more than we thought…. Prongs?"

The red haired boy was circling the Marauders, looking them up and down, while the black haired boy was frozen in place, his eyes darting back and forth between Remus, Sirius, and Peter, his mouth slightly ajar.

"Prongs?" Sirius asked again, grabbing the black haired boy by the shoulders and shaking him.

Remus stepped forward and put his hand on Sirius's shoulder, pulling him back. "Er, Sirius, I don't think that's James."

At the sound of the names, the black haired boy went chalk white. The red haired boy stood once more beside him and said, "Who are you?"

"Peter Pettigrew," Peter offered.

At this, the black haired boy went rigid. His body tensed, his fists clenched, and a vain in his forehead throbbed.

"Sirius Black," Sirius said, curiously.

Remus hesitated. These people obviously seemed to know them, and Sirius had already said they were from the future…. Maybe they could help.

"Remus Lupin." Remus said. "Do you know us?"


	5. Peculiar Circumstances

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Peculiar Circumstances_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR. Unfortunately I am not in that equation.

A/N: Poor James... He's so out of the loop. I am loving all the amazing feedback- thanks to all who reviewed, alerted, and put this on favorites! You guys make my week and this update is for you. : )

* * *

"Er… Harry, are you seeing this too?" the red haired boy asked the black haired boy. "Or have I gone mental?"

"Harry!" Sirius blurted out. "That's the name that little Aber-whatsits bloke called James!"

"Yeah…." Peter said, studying the black haired boy named Harry. "They sure look the same."

When Peter said this, Harry tensed, his fists clenching again. He was too speechless by the situation to say anything.

Sirius studied Harry too. "Are you sure you're not James?"

"I think he knows who he is, Padfoot." Remus pointed out.

"Then, who are you?" Sirius asked Harry and the red haired boy.

The red haired boy turned to the boy named Harry. "You're seeing this, right?"

Harry nodded slowly, not looking away from the Marauders.

"So?" Sirius pestered, growing impatient.

The red haired boy turned to him. "Er, I'm Ron Weasley." he said, quite unsure of the situation.

"Wait… Arthur Weasley's kid?" Sirius asked.

Ron nodded.

Sirius looked at Remus. "So we can't be more than ten or twenty years in the future, right?"

Remus shrugged, looking at Harry. "I don't think we should be talking to you." he told him.

Sirius looked at Harry again and something clicked in his brain. "You're Prongs's kid, aren't you?"

"We've all established that, Sirius." Remus sighed.

"So you are?" Sirius asked.

Harry slowly nodded again.

Sirius took a step back. "Bloody hell, this is barking!"

"You're telling us," Ron said. "Blimey, if you saw yourselves now…." he flashed a look at Peter and stepped further away from him.

"Don't-!" Remus warned. "We can't know anything!"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Relax, Moony. I mean, how many times are we going to travel to the future?"

"You are Sirius." Harry said blankly.

Sirius ran his hands through his hair. "Now that we've established that I'm me, I'm assuming we aren't going to stand in the corridor for the rest of our lives."

Remus shook his head, coming to his senses. "Right…. Is Dumbledore still Headmaster?"

Ron shook his head. "He was, but just last week he got sacked and a complete head case got the job."

Remus blinked. "_Dumbledore_got sacked? As in Albus Dumbledore?"

Ron nodded. "So, what the bloody hell is going on again?"

Remus shook his head. "Never mind that, the point is we need to get out of here and back to our time. What year is it?"

"Er, 1996." Ron supplied.

"Is my dad here with you too?" Harry asked suddenly.

Remus swore.

"Yeah, but we lost track of him a while back," Sirius answered.

Harry had a look of determination in his eyes. "Where did you see him last?"

"He was going to the common room- hey, HEY! Wait!" Sirius yelled as he watched Harry run down the corridor towards the common room.

Ron stood there looking awkward as Remus, Sirius, and Peter stared at him. "Bloody hell." he said, looking them up and down again, his eyes mostly scanning Peter.

"Er, shouldn't we check the common room for Prongs?" Peter suggested.

"Right," Remus agreed.

Ron stopped them. "So, you're _really_ from the past?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Yes. Don't catch on very fast, do you?"

Ron's ears turned red. "Well how would you feel if your mate's dad's mate's came up to you in the hall shouting they were from the past!"

Peter furrowed his brow. "Mate's dad's mate's….?"

Sirius shrugged. "I'd be more interesting than the usual routine day," he said.

"We can talk about this later!" Remus insisted, becoming paranoid as he began walking down the corridor, pulling Sirius and Peter with him.

Ron followed the Marauders. "So…. How did you get here? Blimey, maybe I just inhaled too much of that potion Snape set for us-"

"_Snape's a teacher?_" Sirius exclaimed.

Ron rubbed his neck. "Well, yeah-"

"Bloody hell! How could Dumbledore hire that slimy git!"

"Never mind that," Remus insisted. "We have to make sure we don't run into anyone we know, including him."

"You could use the map?" Ron suggested.

"The what?"

"You know, the map. The Marauders Map?" Ron asked hopefully.

Remus lit up. "It's finished! You have it?"

"Well, yeah-"

"What does it look like?" Peter asked.

Ron shrugged, cringing a bit from being asked directly from Peter. "I dunno, see for yourself." he said, and he told the fat lady the password.

**-...-**

"Sit down Mr. Potter."

James barely heard her. He was too distracted by the hideously ugly interior of the toad woman's office. It was pink. _Terribly_ pink. With lacy drapes and cloths covering nearly everything. On one wall, there was a collection of plates, each depicting horrible, large kittens. He was so distracted by the awful kittens, the fact that this was the Defense Against the Dark Arts room didn't even register with him.

"Sit down Mr. Potter." the toad woman repeated, breaking his daze.

James took the seat in front of her desk.

"Now," the toad woman began in a sugary sweet tone. "Do you know why-"

"This says Headmistress." James said upon examining the sign laid on the toad woman's desk. "Professor Dolores Umbridge?"

The toad woman smiled. "Yes, is there a problem?"

James grinned. "Er, yeah. There is. You aren't Headmistress, Albus Dumbledore is. Or the Headmaster anyway,"

The toad named Umbridge became very red in the face and she got to her feet quickly, which didn't make much of a difference as she wasn't much taller standing than sitting.

"Don't-test-me-Potter!" she said, the sugary sweetness once again evaporated from her voice. "I think you've caused quite enough trouble for me to have you arrested for the remains of your school years! Albus Dumbledore can no longer protect you! Just one quick call to Cornelius and you're off to Azkaban!"

James stood and backed away. "Er, I don't know what you're on _Professor_, but I think you should go see Madam Pomfrey or something…."

Then it hit him. Madam Pomfrey had been acting just as strangely as this woman, and so had those two girls he had met that he had never seen before. There must be a connection. But it's not like he was in the future or something, right? He had to find Remus, Sirius, and Peter and figure this out.

"Sit-down-Potter!" Umbridge threatened, pointing her stubby finger to the seat James had just vacated.

James hesitated. Umbridge looked about ready to commit murder, though Azkaban didn't sound half as pleasant. He concluded that she was obviously lying about sending him off to Azkaban. Sure, he had pulled a few pranks here and there, but nothing _that _serious. He needed to get out of there and find Remus, Sirius and Peter, but how could he with Umbridge staring him down?

**-...-**

"Harry!"

Harry spun around and caught a glimpse of bushy brown hair before he was tackled and knocked to the floor.

"Er, sorry!" Hermione squealed as she helped him back to his feet. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, fine," Harry said distractedly, his eyes darting around the common room.

Hermione studied him anxiously. "So," she said, rather conversationally. "What's your name?"

Harry looked at her funny. "You've just said it, haven't you?"

"Just answer," she pleaded.

"Harry," Harry said. "Why-?"

Hermione hugged him. "Oh, thank Merlin! What happened?"

"Er, I'll tell you in the dormitories," Harry said, confused as he attempted to pry Hermione off himself.

When they reached the boys' dormitories, Harry shut the door behind them and reeled into explanation. By the end, Hermione was looking at him in a very concerned way.

"Harry, we need to get you to the hospital wing straight away-"

Harry shook his head. "No! Hermione, I'm telling you, it's the truth! Remus, Sirius, my dad, they're all here! Even Pettigrew!"

Hermione felt Harry's forehead. "You don't feel warm…. You can't be delirious from fever-"

"I'm NOT delirious!"

"Then why-?"

"They'll probably be here any minute!" Harry insisted. "Just wait and you'll see them!"

Hermione looked on the verge of tears. "Harry…. I know how much you want to see your dad, but-"

The dormitory door opened.

Ron stepped in. "Hermione! You'll never believe this- but look!"

Hermione let out a little "oh!" as Remus, Sirius and Peter stepped in through the door.


	6. In Which Mrs Norris is Accosted

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_In Which Mrs. Norris is Accosted_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter = JKR

**A/N:** Wow, so it's been quite a long time, no? Over a year, as I've calculated. My e-mail is still receiving alerts for this fic, and I felt incredibly guilty about leaving it the way that I did. I have a plan right up until the ending, and it would really be a shame for it not to be finished. So, here you are, faithful readers! This little bit is something I literally _just_ whipped up in a moment of nostalgia and inspiration, and is more of a "**should I continue this**?" chapter than anything else. If I recieve enough feedback, I will continue, though if I feel there is no point because no one is reading this, odds are I probably won't keep writing. Please drop me a review and let me know what you think!

* * *

"Shall we begin now?" Umbridge asked sweetly, her lips curling into a sickening smile. She drew a piece of parchment from her desk drawer and handed it to him along with a feathered quill.

James poised the quill in his fingers, his elbow set on the edge of the desk he was seated at. His facial expression was torn between annoyance and false-pleasantry. He said nothing for a few extremely intense moments, Umbridge staring him down with that girlish smile, her hands folded across her desk. Finally, he said quite bluntly, "Not to be presumptuous, but may I be so forward as to assume I will be writing lines?"

Umbridge's eyes became, if possible, even colder. By this point, James thought it wasn't entirely wrong of him to jump to the conclusion that she was bipolar. She opened her mouth, but before she could speak a deafening crash originating from somewhere above their heads caused both James and the Professor to tilt their heads upward; the latter jumping to her feet in surprise and fury.

Several smaller crashes followed, and Umbridge drew her wand from her frilly pink cardigan, moving towards the door to her office. Before she exited the room, she said sharply over her shoulder, "We are not finished, Mr. Potter!"

James, however, begged to differ, which was why he let out a contented chuckle and ran a hand through his messy black hair cockily as he strode out into the corridor. He watched Umbridge disappear down the right side, therefore he turned left, not at all desiring another run in with the talking toad.

As he turned the corner, he came face to face with two tall, gangly red heads that appeared identical in every way. James blinked twice, fearing he was seeing double.

"Made it out alive did you?" the grinning twin on the right asked.

James looked back and forth between the two, confused. But that was nothing new.

"That," the twin on the left began, "was a clever little diversion we refer to as—"

"—'make Peeves pelt Mrs. Norris with dungbombs'—" the one on the right contributed.

"—'and get Filch involved.'" the one on the left finished with a wink.

"That was you?" James finally spoke up. The twins nodded in unison, grins mirroring one another. James raised his eyebrows, impressed.

"We saw the old toad drag you into her office—" the one the right offered.

"—and thought we'd save you the time." the one on the left supplied.

James grinned gratefully. "Right, thanks." He wondered why these people were helping him and acting like they knew him, and was about to voice these questions when the one on the right said, "No problem, mate. Wouldn't want that scar to get any deeper, would we?" he said, motioning to his hand.

James lifted his hand up and examined it, unaware of any scar he had attained.

"Where is it?" the one on the left asked, his brow knitting with confusion.

"I haven't the faintest clue what you're going on about," James admitted, running a hand through his hair. "Actually, I haven't the faintest idea who either of you are, to tell you the truth."

The twins exchanged a glance.

"Fred—" the one on the right pointed to the one on the left.

"—and George." the one on the left pointed to the one on the right. "Blimey, Harry—did Umbridge confound you?"

James breathed out hotly in frustration. "Why does everyone keep calling me that? My name is _James_. As in _James_ _Potter_. Who is Harry is what I'd like to know!"

Fred and George exchanged another glance. They nodded once at each other as if they had communicated without actually speaking.

"Lift up your fringe, _James_." Fred implored, crossing his arms.

"I don't see how—"

"Look, either you're actually Harry and you've just gone bonkers, or you're not Harry, and the only way to be sure is for you to lift up your fringe." George explained quickly and matter-of-factly.

Quite exasperated, but glad to be speaking with people who actually seemed to comprehend what he was trying to tell them, James lifted his fringe and, to his curiosity, Fred and George examined his forehead.

"You're not Harry." Fred declared satisfactorily, his eyes a bit wide.

George's eyebrows were knitted together. "So you must be James."

James sighed and smiled in spite of himself. _Finally_.

"The resemblance is uncanny, George." Fred commented lightly.

George nodded. "Yes it is, Fred."

The twins stared at James for a few moments before James said, "Who are you, exactly?"

"Well, we've said, haven't we?" Fred said before turning to his twin. "Shall we, George?"

George nodded. "I believe so, Fred."

The two simultaneously grabbed James by his arms and led him down the corridor. James, just relieved to have someone who knew he was him, let them. Without _much_ protest...


	7. Wait Until Sirius Hears About This!

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Wait Until Sirius Hears About This!_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter = JKR

**Author's Notes:**

I have decided to continue! The feedback was absolutely overwhelming, and I owe my motivation to each and every one of you lovely readers! Thank you! Please enjoy. :]

* * *

"All right," Hermione said. One of her hands was suspended in mid-air and the other was positioned on her forehead; she was slightly pale as if she was about to faint. There were several pieces of flyaway hairs around her face that had escaped her plait. "What you are saying is—is that you were involved in a cauldron explosion in the room of requirement, and—and when you left the room, you were somehow twenty years into the future?" Her eyes flickered back and forth between the three Marauders, every word that left her mouth causing her eyes to grow wider and wider.

Remus nodded calmly. "Yes."

"Who are you again?" Sirius asked, a handsome eyebrow cocked. He was leaning against a bed post, hands in pockets, looking quite full of himself. Harry gazed dumbstruck at him. No one else could pull off that kind of natural elegance: this _had_ to be Sirius. He had absolutely no doubts.

"H-hermione Granger," Hermione stuttered, swallowing, quite as if she could barely recall her own name.

A grin tugged at the corners of Sirius's mouth. A rather _suggestive_ grin. "And we aren't somehow RELATED, are we, love?"

Pink flushed Hermione's cheeks, creeping up her neck. "Oh, this is _not_ happening..." she mumbled, staring at her hands, which were positioned in her lap.

"_Sirius_." Remus said sternly, piecing him with a glare so fierce that everyone in the room besides Peter and Sirius did not believe Remus Lupin could achieve. "Excuse him; he's an idiot, you see." Remus told Hermione, who lifted her head up and gave him a weak smile.

Ron suddenly began to laugh. Everyone stared at him. "Wait until Sirius hears about this—!"

"_Ron_!" Hermione exclaimed, eyes once again widening. "They _can't know_—"

"So you know me!" Sirius became eager, his grin widening. "I bet I play for the Bulgarians—or better yet—" he swept his hair cockily, "—I'm a world famous auror, aren't I?"

"Sirius, shut up." Remus rubbed his eyes, tiredly.

Ron was looking incredulous. To Sirius he said, "Mate, you wouldn't believe us if we told you." At which Sirius beamed; an expression that made both Harry and Hermione quite uneasy. Hermione met Harry's eyes and bit her lip.

"Right," Harry spoke for the first time in a while. "Right...so we should get you lot to Dumbledore. Where's my da—J-james?" He swallowed.

"We dunno," Peter piped up, rather unhelpfully. He stood by the door, his eyes frequently flickering back and forth between Sirius and Remus.

"Do you have the Map?" Remus asked, eagerness breaking through his serious expression at the thought of the creation.

Harry nodded. He walked over to his bedside table and drew it out of the drawer. Sirius moved closer.

"You've got the cloak, as well?" Sirius asked, spotting it in the drawer under where the map had been.

"Perhaps that will prove useful," Remus shared his thoughts, watching Harry unfold the map with uncontained curiosity. "Going about the castle unseen, that is."

Hermione nodded in agreement. "Yes, Prof—" she hurriedly clamped both hands over her mouth, a little squeaking sound escaping her throat, eyes extremely wide.

"_Professor_?" Sirius had both of his eyebrows raised above his hairline. His eyes moved from Hermione to Remus. "Merlin, Moons!"

Hermione was looking frantic. "It just slipped out! You just sound so _mature_, and—"

"He's with Umbridge." Harry said flatly, eyes meeting Hermione's. "We have to get him out of there."

"Who is Umbridge?" Remus asked.

"She's a right old—" Ron began.

Hermione cut him off. "It doesn't matter! He—he needs to—if she finds you—" her eyes rested on Sirius for a long moment before looking at Harry.

"I'll go find him," Harry said firmly, getting to his feet. "I'll meet you all back here—"

"Harry," Hermione said gently. "That doesn't make sense. You both look—"

"—incredibly similar." Sirius grinned at Hermione.

Hermione threw him a weak, unsure smile. "Yes...and, I really think just Ron and I should go..." Her eyes moved to Sirius and Peter: the former was dubbed clinically raving by society, and the latter was supposedly assumed to be dead.

Harry clutched the map firmly in his hands. His jaw was set. "I'm going, Hermione."

"Harry..." Hermione's eyes were brimming slightly.

Ron stepped forward. "She's right, mate."

"You don't understand!" Harry protested. "This could be my _only chance_—"

"We _know_, Harry." Hermione placed her hand on his arm in warning.

Harry did not think they did know, but sense was beginning to crash down upon him. Over half the school already thought he was off his rocker, and it wouldn't do for people to think he had some sort of twin. But yet, this was his _chance_. His _only chance_ to meet his father.

"We'll find him and bring him back here," Hermione continued gently. "C-can you think of some way to contact _anyone_?"

Harry racked his brain. The fireplaces were under surveillance, apparation was impossible...THE MIRROR. He nodded at Hermione and handed her the map. She smiled encouragingly at him and she and Ron left the dorm; Ron with one last incredulous look back at the three Marauders.

Remus had been watching the exchange between Harry and Hermione closely with a knitted brow. Sirius was busting himself by glancing through the leather-bound photo album he had stumbled upon earlier. Peter was standing by the doorway, looking as awkward as was humanly possible.

Harry stood still for a moment, then went to his trunk, pulling out a small mirror after a minute of groping through it.

"Where did you get that?" Sirius asked, noticing the mirror. He knew it was quite a stupid question, but as he was Sirius Black, any question was intelligent if coming from him.

Harry sat on Ron's bed, across from Sirius. "Er—from you." He peered inside the mirror and said quite clearly: "Sirius Black."

Sirius grinned widely. "Me?"

"Yes," Harry said, running a hand through his hair. "Well no, but yes—"

"Harry?" the Sirius in the mirror asked urgently. "What happened? Is something wrong?"

"Holy shit—" Sirius (the younger) peered through the mirror, "It IS me!"

The Sirius in the mirror froze, eyes widening at his younger self.

"Yeah..." Harry rubbed his neck. "Can I speak with Remus?"

White faced, Sirius complied. Harry knew if this situation had been any different, he would have protested and demanded to know more before retrieving his old friend.

Remus (the younger) sat beside Sirius on the bed and pulled his face away from the mirror. "Are you trying to give yourself heart failure!"

"Don't tell me you aren't curious Remus," Sirius grinned at the exciting prospect of meeting his older self. "I wonder if I'm married..."

"Harry?" the Remus in the mirror asked quickly. "What is it?"

"I can't exactly explain," Harry said, struggling to do so.

Remus nodded quite business-like. "Yes...all right." Apparently he had judged the situation by the look on Sirius's (the older) face. "Where can we meet?"

"There's a cave a bit a ways from Hogsmeade," Harry told him, the place immediately coming to mind. "Sirius knows where it is—you can apparate there."

Remus (the older) nodded urgently. "When shall I see you there?"

How much time would it take Ron and Hermione to find his father?

"In about an hour," Harry decided.

"We'll keep the mirror with us," Remus said, and was gone.

It was quiet for a moment before Sirius, grinning quite widely, said, "This is bloody brilliant."


	8. Turkey or Hippogriff?

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Turkey or Hippogriff?_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

* * *

"I can't believe I—oh..." Hermione muttered as she and Ron exited through the portrait hole. Her eyes were focused on the floor.

Ron grinned at the blush that hadn't left her cheeks since Sirius had spoken to her.

"What are you so cheerful about?" she demanded.

Ron's ears coloured slightly. "It's just—blimey..." He shrugged, averting his eyes. "D'you think Harry will be all right? Alone with them and all?"

"We should get back as soon as we can," Hermione said, neither confirming nor denying the question. Her mind, at the moment, was as frazzled as her hair.

-..-

"So..." Sirius began, somehow maintaining an air of elegance as he lay on his back draped across the bed, head upside-down and dangling off the end. "You're Prongs's sprog."

Harry, who stood leaning against his Seamus's bedpost, nodded as he ran a hand through his hair.

"You could be his twin," Remus commented. "Although you don't appear to have YOUR head blown up to twice it's normal size."

Peter made a grunt of agreement.

Harry smiled weakly. He still hadn't gotten over seeing Snape's memory in the pensive. The first thought that ran through his head when he was told his teenage father had somehow been transported forward in time (besides the incredulousness of it all), was the unyielding urge to meet him; see what he was like. If he was the cruel boy in the memory, or the person Harry had always pictured him to be in his head. He simply had to find out.

"Bloody hell..." Sirius was now sitting up and leafing through the album once again. "I knew Prongs fancies Evans, but let's face it—he must've slipped her a love potion or something."

Harry shifted uncomfortably.

"You were probably in on that scheme, Pads." Remus said from the adjacent bed. "I wouldn't put it past you to cook something like that up."

"Speaking of cooking, I could eat a hippogriff right about now." Sirius said, eyes still tracing the photos.

"Perhaps you should marry a turkey, then." Remus suggested. "You and Prongs could have a double wedding, and then you could eat her at the reception."

"Whoa, who said it's going to be a 'she?'"

"You're going to be homosexual with a turkey?" Remus cocked an eyebrow. "That's even a bit eccentric for YOU, Sirius."

"You're right," Sirius admitted. "A hippogriff it is, then!"

Harry, despite himself, laughed.

-..-

Hermione tucked the map inside her pocket and pulled Ron by the sleeve of his shirt down the corridor.

"What's got into you?" Ron asked, assessing the disheveled Hermione.

Hermione stopped walking and turned on him. "I don't know, Ron. Perhaps I'm concerned that four boys sent from the past might discover too much about their future selves and incinerate the entire time continuum!" she whispered furiously. "Have any other questions?"

Ron turned a slight red. "Yeah...why are you whispering?"

Hermione pushed back her fringe. "It seems to fit the situation." She turned on her heel and continued down the corridor.

Ron stood for a moment, shaking his head after her, muttering under his breath, "Bloody lunatic..."

-..-

"You'd think, for once, your mind would be distracted from thinking about what's in your stomach, given that you are presently twenty years into the future."

"Time travel takes a lot out of you, Moony." Sirius shrugged as his stomach growled for the umpteenth time. He got to his feet and tipped his invisible hat at Harry. "Shall we adjourn to the kitchens?"

Remus rolled his eyes in a fashion only he could accomplish, while Harry cracked a tiny grin at the youthful, lively Sirius that stood in front of him.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt..." Harry thought aloud. This was as good of an excuse as any to search for his father.

Sirius grinned and pulled Remus by the arm and through the door, ignoring his protests.

-..-

"Let me get this straight," James said to the twins as the three walked down the corridor. "I—James Potter—am in the future, and my son—Harry Potter—who looks just like me, is in his fifth year."

Fred nodded. "Five points to Gryffindor," he winked.

"That explains...a lot. Bloody hell..." James admitted, running a hand through his untidy locks. "And that Umbridge woman? What did she want with me—er, Harry?"

"Shall we say that she would love no less than to castrate him, and leave it at that." George grinned.

Fred nodded again. "That woman has a rod shoved up her—Ron?"

Hermione and Ron rapidly approached from the other end of the corridor.

"Are you James?" Hermione asked anxiously, peering at him as though attempting to find a difference between him and Harry.

James looked at her oddly. "Yes, how do you—?" His eyes lit up. "You've seen Sirius, Remus, and Peter, haven't you? Where are they?"

"Bloody hell," Ron stared wide-eyed at James.

"Our thoughts exactly, little brother," Fred said.

Hermione looked back and forth between the twins. "How do you know—?"

"Since you asked," George began, "when we found him, he didn't know who we were, nor who Umbridge was—"

"—and we could understand him blocking Umbridge from his mind, but US? There was no way," Fred continued.

"So we checked his forehead, and sure enough," George finished with a motion to James, shaking his head.

"The scar...why didn't I think of that?" Hermione looked as though she had mentally slapped herself.

"And eyes," Ron pointed out quite observantly and uncharacteristically, examining James's hazel eyes that were quite different from Harry's emerald ones.

Fred examined his nails in a pompous manner. "Don't beat yourself up,"

"All in a days work," George grinned.

"Who exactly are you two?" James asked Hermione and Ron, quite used to the confusion by this point.

Ron began, "I'm Ron Weas—"

"We don't have the time to explain," Hermione cut him off, "we need to get back to the dormitory." When no one moved, she ushered, "Now!"

"We're coming," Fred and George announced in unison.

Hermione, rather exasperated, allowed this. "Oh, all right. Just _hurry_!"


	9. Waldo the Perpetually Indifferent

**Encounters of the Future Sort**

_Waldo the Indifferent_

by IHaveASiriusObsession

**A/N:** So, despite the fact that I currently have four stitches in the palm of my right hand (which happens to be my writing hand), I still managed to one-handedly whip this up for you guys. I get my stitches out in about a week, but I felt bad about having another slow update, so here you are. All of you are absolutely amazing for all of your lovely feedback-and I really can't stress that enough. Thank you to everyone who has read so far (especially you reviewers): Every one of you kicks some serious ass (unless you'd rather be kissing some Sirius face...either way).

* * *

"We should hurry..." Remus said, looking anxiously around.

Sirius put both of his hands behind his head as he strolled at a leisurely pace. "Relax, Moony. Enjoy yourself for once in your bloody life, yeah?"

It was odd—no, odd wouldn't even come remotely close to the right word that could successfully describe this situation. To put it simply, Harry was trying to convince himself that someone hadn't ground up a suspicious leaf from greenhouse seven and put it in his tea that morning.

"Are you all right?"

"Er—yeah..." Harry answered Remus, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just a bit...odd, seeing you all."

"Odd for you?" Sirius barked out laughter. "We're the same age, mate. In our time Evans hates Prongs, the Cannons still suck, and the newest model broom is the Pluvia 180. What is it here? The Pulvia 5000?"

Harry half-grinned, "I see your point."

"I say!"

Sirius's eyes widened. "Shit."

"Who said that?" Peter asked, glancing up and down the corridor.

It was a portrait of an old, wrinkly man wearing scarlet robes, and though he had a beard that reached the floor, the top of his head was as bare as a baby's bottom (but hopefully not as smelly). His eyes were framed by round glasses with very thick lenses so that his eyes were magnified to twice their normal size. Under his portrait read the title, "Waldo the Perpetually Indifferent" (also known as Waldo the Transiently Zealous and Waldo the Contradicted). Apparently his indifference did not restrain his curiosity (which was where the contradicted title cleared things up).

"Young lad, did you just say you were from the past?" the Waldo asked, jumping out of his armchair and peering closely at the group (particularly Sirius).

Remus burst out laughing. "Yes—that's John—the joker!" He clasped Sirius on the back and wiped away an imaginary tear. "From the _past_...good one John!"

The man in the portrait continued to peer at them as they rushed down the corridor.

"That was impressive, Moony. Even for you," Sirius commended, grinning. "Why John?"

Remus shrugged. "It's my middle name, my father's name, and relatively inconspicuous. And thank you." He put his hands in his pockets.

Remus seemed, Harry noticed, rather proud of his actions and Sirius's praise (although Harry doubted he would admit it). He was definitely not the selfless man Harry knew him to be. This would take some getting used to.

-...-

"Would you two shut it!"

"Calm down, Hermione," George said as he received a death glare from said Witch, which was rarely seen, but quite frightening nonetheless.

"And so then I said to him, 'how the hell are we to know the difference?' and he said, 'well, if you eat one and start to grow massive boils right in the—"

"Fred!"

"—you'll know it's the wrong chocolate." Fred continued.

"It was worth the pain," George winked. "Those were the best chocolates I've ever tasted."

"Maybe it was worth it for you!" Ron protested. "You weren't the one who had to suffer with great pussy boils on their—"

"Ron!" Hermione protested again. "I'm sorry, James—"

But James was already laughing.

"Yeah, but you learned your lesson." George said to Ron.

Fred turned to a hysterical James. "Never eaten sweets from us since,"

"Cripes! Fred, George!" someone shouted from the other end of the corridor.

"It's Lee," Fred muttered. "Probably wants to show us that tentacula..."

"We'll catch up with you lot later," George waved as he and his twin turned around to catch up with Lee Jordan, who stood beaming at the other end of the corridor, a suspiciously large box in hand.

Hermione glared after them. "If we weren't doing something far more important, that thing would be confiscated..." She pulled both James and Ron by their shirt sleeves and said, "Come on!"

-...-

"It's absolutely brilliant," Harry said. "I use it LOADS..."

Remus beamed.

"How did you get a hold of the map?" Sirius asked. "Why don't Moony's sprogs, or my sprogs—Merlin! Do I have sprogs?"

"Er—"

"Don't answer Harry." Remus firmly implored.

Sirius put his hands behind his head. "I've always pegged myself as the terminal bachelor type, but—"

"Harry!" Ginny rushed out of a side corridor and grabbed Harry's arm. "What happened to you? Are you..." She spotted Sirius, Remus, and Peter and clasped her hand over her mouth.

Harry rubbed his neck awkwardly. "Ginny, this is Sirius, Remus, and—" he swallowed, "Peter. They're, er...from the past."

Sirius stepped forward and took Ginny's hand in his. "Au chante," he bent down and kissed her hand.

Harry watched in amusement, while Remus looked annoyed and Peter a mixture between awed and impressed.

"Excuse him, he's seen multiple Muggle films where that line actually works on a girl." Remus smiled politely.

Sirius wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"So earlier," Ginny said, connecting all of the pieces in her head, "that actually _was_...wow."

Harry nodded.

Ginny looked back and forth between the three Marauders. "How—how did you get here?"

"That," Sirius began, "is a bit of a story."

-...-

"What is she doing?" James asked Ron, peering oddly at Hermione's back.

"She's...uh, checking...something."

James leaned to his far left, and despite Hermione's efforts, saw a corner of worn parchment. His eyes lit up. "The map! You have the map—don't you?"

Ron shifted nervously. "Er..."

"Is it brilliant? We haven't got it quite perfected yet, but Moony reckons it'll be done at least over the summer—"

"Mr. Weasley,"

Ron jumped and was met face to face by McGonagall, who had just rounded the corner. Hermione immediately stuffed the map in her pocket, and James, realizing who it was, said, "Minnie, you haven't aged a day!"

"Why thank you, Mr. Potter." McGonagall said distractedly. "Now Miss Granger—" Her eyes did a double-take and she turned chalk white, clutching her heart. "My goodness..."

Hermione grinned timidly. "Let me explain, Professor..."


End file.
